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On tablets and convertible devices, Windows 10 can control their motion sensor to rotate the desktop to landscape or portrait mode automatically depending on the orientation of the screen.

If auto-rotation isn't working after covering your troubleshooting basics, such as checking for updates and restarting your device, there are a number of steps you can follow to fix this issue.

Unfortunately, users have reported that Rotation Lock option is grayed out and that rotation isn’t working on their devices.

In this Windows 10 guide, we'll walk you through solutions you can try to get screen rotation working again on your tablet or convertible.

How To Fix Rotation Lock Grayed Out or Missing In Windows 10

If Rotation Lock is grayed out or missing on your device, sometimes you just need to rotate it to portrait mode. After rotating your device, rotation lock should be clickable again. If your device doesn’t switch to portrait mode automatically, you might have to switch manually by following these steps:

1. Open Settings App by pressing Windows + I keys and go to System > Display.

2. Find Orientation and choose Portrait from the menu.

3. Your device should automatically switch to portrait mode.

Users have reported that Rotation Lock is grayed out on their Dell Inspiron 11, and only way to fix this is to use the tent mode. To enable Rotation Lock, do the following:

2. Click the Action Center icon in your Taskbar and Rotation Lock should be available. Now you can turn off rotation lock and your display should rotate to a proper position.

In certain devices, such as the Microsoft Surface Pro or or Dell XPS 2-in-1 device, Windows 10 will lock screen rotation and disable the "Rotation lock" option when a keyboard is attached and in a typing position. However, folding the keyboard or closing the device will release the lock and the screen will once again rotate automatically.

Grayed out or missing Rotation Lock button can be fixed simply by switching to Tablet Mode. If your device doesn’t switch automatically to Tablet Mode, you can do the following to access Tablet Mode manually:

1. Click the Action Center icon in your Taskbar.

2. Click the Tablet Mode.

Running Troubleshooter

If the screen will still not rotate, you can use the Sensors Troubleshooter to fix the problem.

2. Double-click the SensorDiagnosticTablet.diagcab to launch the experience.

3. Click the Next button.

4. The utility will scan, detect, and fix common problems with the sensors on your computer, including the motion sensor.

5. Click the Close button.

After completing the steps, try to change the orientation of the device to see if auto-rotation works.

Updating Motion Sensor Driver

Although it's rare, the rotation problem could be caused by a driver issue. If this is the case, you should try updating the sensors driver.

You can check this guide to learn the steps on how to update a device driver. If you're using Device Manager, typically, this device will appear under "Sensor I/O devices" or "Sensors."

Change Registry Values to Fix Grayed Out Rotation Lock Option

If you have tried all the solutions, and you continue to see the rotation lock option grayed out, even after disconnecting the keyboard, dock, or disabling the external display, then do the following:

Warning

Editing the Registry is risky, and it can cause irreversible damage to your installation if you don't do it correctly. It's recommended to make a full backup of your PC and create a system restore point before proceeding.

On the Windows 10 Creators Update and later, you can now copy and paste the path into the new Registry Editor address bar to quickly jump to the key destination.

4. Double-click the Enable DWORD and make sure the value is set to 1.

5. Click OK button.

6. Double-click the LastOrientation DWORD and make sure the value is set to 0.

7. Click OK button.

8. Double-click the SensorPresent DWORD and make sure the value is set to 1.

9. Click OK button.

10. Double-click the SlateEnable DWORD and make sure the value is set to 1.

11. Click OK button.

Once you've completed the steps, restart your device to see if auto-rotation works again.

If any of these DWORDs are missing from the AutoRotation key, you'll have to create them manually:

Make Sure That Your Screen Is Allowed To Auto Rotate

If your screen isn’t allowed to auto-rotate, this can be one of the causes for Rotation Lock problems. To fix this issue, you need to check if your screen is allowed to auto-rotate. To do that, follow these steps:

1. Right-click your desktop and choose Display settings.

2. When Display settings open, click on Advanced display settings.

3. Click on the Advanced sizing of text and other items.

4. On the left side choose Change display settings.

5. Check Allow the screen to auto-rotate.

6. Click Apply and OK buttons to save the changes.

7. After you’ve done that, restart your computer in order to apply the changes.

Check Sensor Monitoring Service

Problems with Rotation Lock and rotation can be caused by certain services, so let’s check if those services are working properly. To do that, do the following:

3. Change the Startup type to Automatic and click Start button to start the service.

4. Click Apply and OK buttons to save the changes.

Disable YMC Service

If you own Lenovo Yoga device and you have problems with rotation and Rotation Lock button, you can fix these problems by disabling the YMC service. To do that, you need to follow these steps:

1. Open Services window and locate YMC service.

2. Double click the service to open its properties and set the Startup type to Disabled.

3. Click Apply and OK buttons to save the changes.

Remove Intel Virtual Buttons Driver

It has been reported that Intel Virtual Buttons driver causes problems with rotation and it also makes the Rotation Lock button grayed out. So far, the only solution is to uninstall the driver and to do that you need to follow these steps:

1. Open Device Manager. You can open Device Manager by pressing Windows + X keys and choosing Device Manager from the list.

2. Once Device Manager opens, locate Intel Virtual Buttons driver.

3. Right-click it and choose Uninstall.

After the driver has been removed, rotation and Rotation Lock button should be working normally.